Chapter 37 - Final Quarrel (CF)
Tubba and Chubba paced around each other in a circle, treading the same path. Tubba knew that Chubba had not considered escaping from the hastily conjured wrought iron cage the Koopa King had placed around them. It was only natural. Ludwig was merely enabling a three decade old conflict to reach it’s conclusion. The thought of cooperating, the thought of escaping and fighting Ludwig together... Tubba couldn’t stomach that idea. He could see in Chubba’s eyes that his brother didn’t believe that idea either. It didn’t matter that they were playing into Ludwig’s hands, that the loser would be dead and the winner sorely weakened - they would finally get the quarrel they so desired. However, those ideas didn’t seem to align with Chubba’s actions merely seconds ago... “Chubba, why’d you save me?” Tubba inquired, his muscles braced in case his twin decided to do something underhanded. “If you think it was out of brotherly love,” Chubba seemed eager to crush the initial implications of his actions down, “you’re wrong, as always. I was trying to get that accursed wand off of Ludwig.” Chubba glared at Ludwig, who was still pointing his wand into the cage at the two Clubbas, his face deep in thought as he listened to the two of them. “Why?” That was the only word Tubba could force out. It was impossible for Chubba to know more than Tubba did about Ludwig... right? “Zat’s enough!” Ludwig interrupted the discussion by firing one of his typical ultramarine fireballs between the two Clubbas, scorching and blackening the carpet between the two of them. “Fight now, or I vill kill you both.” Ludwig’s voice had no quality of rage, but the deep, menacing quality conveyed a shiver down Tubba’s spine all the same. One must survive. One must die. We shared the same egg. Tubba reflected, looking at his twin, who clearly wasn’t going to answer his question. If you crawled out first, would it all have been different? Would it all have been changed? It wasn’t an unfounded question. If Chubba had came out first, he would’ve been the older one by a few seconds, not the other way around. The throne would have always been his to lose. I always felt like the subjects of the Clubba Kingdom regarded Chubba as the greater King, and it had incensed me. If I was second born, I wouldn’t have had to worry about that. Chubba would’ve been King anyway. My father would not have sent me away on a mission when it mattered, and I could have been there to save his life. There would have been no desire to get vengeance on Bubba if I saved my father’s life, I would not have been estranged from the Kingdom and lost all the respect of the Clubbas. A decade later, I would not have felt the need to return to the Kingdom for it was falling without an heir for redemption, because not only would I have nothing to redeem, Chubba or I would be the King, not Mycerinus, who was thrown in woefully underprepared. I would never have came to the Glitz Pit, I would never have felt second best over and over again, because it wasn’t my throne to lose. Everything would be different. Tubba swung his club in unison with Chubba, the ParaClubban club meeting the one Chubba had been given at birth. Their parents had only ever planned for one child, and Tubba was given the club that had been marked out as the club of a King, which had been shattered in space six years ago. Chubba’s own club had been hastily arranged upon the realization that there were two offspring of the King. Sparks flew from the heads of the two clubs as the battle marked out in the stars from the moment their embryos cleaved into two. They had trained for what had felt like centuries together, first under Clubbar, and then in the Glitz Pit. Tubba could anticipate every move of Chubba’s, and he knew that his twin felt the same way. Together they danced, swinging their clubs with seasons upon seasons worth of familiarity, clashing, dodging, aware of the other’s next move. We sparred for fun as kids. Tubba remarked darkly in his head as he pressed his club forward, forcing Chubba to leap backwards. We fought to improve the other in the Glitz Pit. He ducked under the retaliatory blow he knew was coming, evading Chubba’s club as it seared over his head. “Don’t think you’re winning this,” Chubba grunted with exertion as he swung his club toward Tubba, who could not bring his own up in time. The head of Chubba’s club nailed into the side of Tubba’s head, throwing him to the floor and making Tubba see stars. Collapsing onto the carpet, Tubba fought the dizziness that was settling in, rolling away from another attempted blow of Chubba’s club. Leaping to his feet quicker than he ever had before, he swung his club, hearing the satisfactory sound of metal on scales. He could see teal scales being ripped off of Chubba’s side, the wound beginning to well with blood. Growling with frustration, Chubba began to swing his club harder and faster, forcing Tubba’s own movements to deflect his brother to become quicker. He began to stumble over his own feet, nearly losing his balance, waving his tail to try and keep a low centre of gravity. Tail! Horror seized Tubba as he realized exactly what was happening. A basic tenet, postulate, whatever one wanted to call it, of Clubban fighting was to use one’s tail for as much balance as possible. With half of his own tail absent, Chubba’s plan began to settle in place in Tubba’s mind, like a rock slowly sinking to the bottom of the sea. He’s unbalancing me. Oh, Cloansar, this is it. One more step backwards, and he stumbled again. One final swipe of Chubba’s club, firmly into the thick belly scales that should’ve been a Clubba’s greatest defence sent Tubba flying backwards, his own club flying out of his limp red hands, falling somewhere off the bars opposite to Tubba with an eerie bang. The pain seemed distant as he crashed, shell-first, into the firm iron bars of the cage, sitting limply as Chubba finished the follow through of the blow that had felled Tubba. The blow that had felled Tubba. “It vas always doomed to end in failure,” Ludwig’s voice dripped in disdain, very close to Tubba’s internal ear. The Koopa King was directly behind Tubba, his wand placed firmly on Tubba’s shoulder, so as to prevent him from getting up. Tubba had no intention on getting up: his vision spun as he clung desperately to consciousness, as Chubba drew even closer, his face unreadable. “Chubba... no.” Tubba pleaded, feeling Ludwig’s wand dig deeper into his shoulder. He was pleading, grovelling, something he had sworn never to do. This was a scene straight out of his nightmares. Tubba let his hand trail down his scales, down the red body scales, onto the white belly scales, which were virtually indistinguishable from the other red scales, being drenched with blood. Chubba had pierced the belly scales effortlessly, fresh blood pumping from the wound like a pipe. “Brother... twin... no.” Chubba said nothing. His eyes were dark as they approached, hoisting his club and pointing it to Tubba. He refused to let their eyes meet, rather focusing it on a point just above Tubba’s head. Tubba guessed it was Ludwig, who was no doubt standing behind him to watch his failure. Pain seared through Tubba as Chubba drove his club forward, piercing his shoulder scales. He couldn’t suppress a cry of agony, not over the pain, but over what was happening. This was never how he imagined to go. His vision swum before his eyes, enough to see Chubba leaning backwards and away from Tubba, tearing his club out of his twin’s shoulder. “No!” Ludwig’s frustrated yell was like ice cold water, snapping Tubba back to his senses and alerting him to the fact that Chubba had once again done something contrary to his expectations. Rather than driving his club into Tubba’s shoulder as the beginning of the end for Tubba, Chubba had dug it into his shoulder to flick Ludwig’s wand up into the air. As his teal twin leaned back to catch the wand, Tubba watched, vision normalizing, as Chubba caught it perfectly and threw it to the ground, breaking the blue orb on the grey metal hilt. For good measure, a firm teal foot was planted over the shards, cracking it into thousands of pieces. The cage began to shiver, as if it was underwater, around the two Clubbas. “Ludwig’s wand is the way he can channel most of his magical abilities. Without it, it’s like an ocean of water. Worthless on it’s own, without something to channel the immense forces it can create.” Chubba explained, looking at his twin lying on the ground. Tubba rose to his feet, pinching the wound in his belly as he did so to stem the flow of blood. Ignoring the pain, he drew closer to his twin, who returned his gaze. Tubba was vaguely aware of Ludwig cursing in the background - the wrought iron cage that had served to entrap the Clubbas was now keeping Ludwig out, even as it began to disappear. “You saved my life. Twice.” “It wasn’t for you,” Chubba snapped, taking a step backwards. “I did it for myself, to get revenge on Ludwig. I don’t care about you. I don’t care about this Kingdom. I’m going back to the Glitz Pit. I’m rich, I have money. This means nothing.” Chubba turned his tail on Tubba, who stood and watched. Whatever his brother might suggest to himself was his motives, Tubba doubted. Tubba knew that from this moment on, he would always believe that his brother, his twin, acted out of something more than just his own desires. Even if it wasn’t true - which it could very well not be - it had redeemed Chubba in Tubba’s eyes. As he picked up the ParaClubban club, he couldn’t suppress a flame of admiration for his single-minded twin. The cage vanished completely. Chubba began to walk away, down the halls, and away from Tubba. Turning around to Ludwig, who was in a fit of rage Tubba had never seen him give in to, Tubba wondered if he would ever see his twin again. “How did zis happen? You two hate each ozzer!” Ludwig snarled, clenching his fists and racing toward Tubba, breathing fireballs as he did so. The lack of his magic wand may have deprived him of some of his abilities, but the Koopa King was still one of the most dangerous enemies in the Mushroom World. Tubba knew as he evaded the fireballs Ludwig spat at him, that this was the battle. Ignoring the pain in his belly from the wound Chubba had given him, he braced himself to finally duel for the one thing he wanted most. ''His Kingdom. ''